Reuters-Health
Date: Tue, 27 Jan 2026 17:03:30 -0500 (EST)
Subject: Electric cars improve neighborhood air quality
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Health Rounds
Health Rounds
By Nancy Lapid , Health Science Editor
Hello Health Rounds readers! Despite the current U.S. political climate that frowns on electric vehicles, data featured in today's newsletter shows their clear benefit on local air pollution levels. We also report on new contact lenses being developed that can monitor pressure in the eye to gauge glaucoma risk.
In breaking news stories from our Reuters colleagues: Drugmakers turn to AI to speed trials, regulatory submissions ; US health insurers slump after 2027 Medicare Advantage payments proposal ; South Carolina measles cases surpass Texas' 2025 outbreak total ; European countries including UK lose measles elimination status ; 31,000 nurses to strike at Kaiser Permanente in California, Hawaii; and Ethiopia declares end of Marburg outbreak that killed nine .
Also: California joins UN health network following US departure from WHO; Indian drugmakers get regulatory nod to sell generic Wegovy; US vaccine panel head questions polio recommendation; and DOJ withdraws demand for hospital to turn over transgender minors' records.
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Industry Updates
Danone, Nestle shares sink as baby formula recall widens.
US infant botulism outbreak linked to ByHeart supplier.
Roche obesity drug shows 22.5% weight loss.
UnitedHealth forecasts first revenue drop in nearly four decades; Spire Healthcare's shares soar 20% amid buyout talks; HCA Healthcare forecasts 2026 profit above estimates and Orange Health eyes profitability in early 2028.
Meta, TikTok, YouTube to stand trial on youth addiction claims.
Merck no longer in talks to buy Revolution Medicines.
Sarepta's Duchenne gene therapy slows disease progression.
Hansoh Pharmaceutical launches $600 million convertible bond.
China halts sale of Sun Pharma dementia drug.
Intellia gets FDA nod to resume gene therapy trial.
Boehringer Ingelheim in deal with China's Simcere Pharma to license IBD drug candidate.
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AI scribes that listen in on doctors and patients and write notes offer promise but open new legal frontiers
REUTERS/Jim Bourg
Health systems are racing to integrate so-called ambient scribes that passively record and synthesize patient-physician interactions into structured medical notes. But to do so, they must navigate a complex web of privacy litigation, regulatory guidance, and professional ethics.
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Study Rounds
Neighborhoods with more electric cars have cleaner air
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The more electric cars in a neighborhood, the lower the air pollution from burning fossil fuels, researchers studying satellite data for California found.
Conversely, satellite data also confirmed that neighborhoods that added more gas-powered cars saw a rise in pollution.
“We’re not even fully there in terms of electrifying, but our research shows that California’s transition to electric vehicles is already making measurable differences in the air we breathe,” study leader Sandrah Eckel of the Keck School of Medicine of USC said in a statement.
For every 200 zero-emissions vehicles added to California neighborhoods between 2019 and 2023, nitrogen dioxide levels dropped 1.1%, researchers reported in The Lancet Planetary Health .
The pollutant, released from burning fossil fuels, can trigger asthma attacks, cause bronchitis, and increase the risk of heart disease and stroke. For the analysis, the researchers divided California into 1,692 neighborhoods and obtained publicly available data from the state’s Department of Motor Vehicles on the number of “light-duty” ZEVs registered in each neighborhood. These included full-battery electric cars, plug-in electric hybrids and hydrogen fuel-cell cars.
They then obtained data from a high-resolution satellite sensor that monitors NO2 levels by measuring how the gas absorbs and reflects sunlight.
The researchers said they plan to compare data on ZEV adoption with asthma-related emergency room visits and hospitalizations across California.
While the Trump administration favors gas-powered vehicles and ended tax credits aimed at promoting EVs, the report noted that a full transition to electric vehicles is projected to reduce ambient NO2 concentrations by 61% in the United States and by up to 80% in China.
Meanwhile, the new findings “show that cleaner air isn't just a theory, it's already happening in communities across California,” Eckel said.
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Read more about pollution and health on Reuters.com
Toxic chemicals permeate the food we eat. Here’s how to design them out
?
Experimental contact lenses monitor pressure in the eye
Experimental contact lenses are being developed that can monitor pressure inside the eye in order to stave off glaucoma, and early animal research found them to be as accurate as current, more cumbersome equipment.
Japanese researchers say they have come up with a way to integrate into the lenses a thin film with multiple layers, each with its own intrinsic properties that help to measure and monitor intraocular pressure in real time, they reported in npj Flexible Electronics .
An antenna built into the lens allows for wireless transmission of the data.
Glaucoma is a leading cause of blindness among people who are unable to monitor and manage their intraocular pressure daily, the researchers noted. Current tools for intraocular pressure measurement are not portable, convenient, easily accessible, or capable of continuous monitoring.
When they tested their lenses in rabbits, the pressures transmitted by the devices matched the pressures obtained with traditional monitoring devices, according to the report.
Certain obstacles must be overcome before the devices are ready for prime time, the authors acknowledge, including the need to distinguish intraocular pressure changes that arise simply from posture changes and blinking.
“Our platform is promising for long-term, non-invasive intraocular pressure monitoring," said study leader Takeo Miyake of Waseda University in Tokyo, "thus making a significant contribution to the early diagnosis and treatment of glaucoma.”
?
In case you missed it...
Health Rounds: Colon cancer becomes leading cause of US cancer deaths for those under 50
Health Rounds: How obesity leads to uncontrolled inflammation discovered
?
This newsletter was edited by Bill Berkrot; additional reporting by Shawana Alleyne-Morris.
Sponsors are not involved in the creation of newsletters or other Reuters news content. Advertise in this newsletter or on Reuters' website
Reuters Health Rounds is sent twice a week. Think your friend or colleague should know about us? Forward this newsletter to them. They can also sign up here .
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© 2026 Thomson Reuters. All rights reserved.
3 Times Square, New York, NY 10036
Subject: Electric cars improve neighborhood air quality
(Converted from HTML)
Get full access to Reuters.com for just $1/week. Subscribe now.
?
Health Rounds
Health Rounds
By Nancy Lapid , Health Science Editor
Hello Health Rounds readers! Despite the current U.S. political climate that frowns on electric vehicles, data featured in today's newsletter shows their clear benefit on local air pollution levels. We also report on new contact lenses being developed that can monitor pressure in the eye to gauge glaucoma risk.
In breaking news stories from our Reuters colleagues: Drugmakers turn to AI to speed trials, regulatory submissions ; US health insurers slump after 2027 Medicare Advantage payments proposal ; South Carolina measles cases surpass Texas' 2025 outbreak total ; European countries including UK lose measles elimination status ; 31,000 nurses to strike at Kaiser Permanente in California, Hawaii; and Ethiopia declares end of Marburg outbreak that killed nine .
Also: California joins UN health network following US departure from WHO; Indian drugmakers get regulatory nod to sell generic Wegovy; US vaccine panel head questions polio recommendation; and DOJ withdraws demand for hospital to turn over transgender minors' records.
?
Industry Updates
Danone, Nestle shares sink as baby formula recall widens.
US infant botulism outbreak linked to ByHeart supplier.
Roche obesity drug shows 22.5% weight loss.
UnitedHealth forecasts first revenue drop in nearly four decades; Spire Healthcare's shares soar 20% amid buyout talks; HCA Healthcare forecasts 2026 profit above estimates and Orange Health eyes profitability in early 2028.
Meta, TikTok, YouTube to stand trial on youth addiction claims.
Merck no longer in talks to buy Revolution Medicines.
Sarepta's Duchenne gene therapy slows disease progression.
Hansoh Pharmaceutical launches $600 million convertible bond.
China halts sale of Sun Pharma dementia drug.
Intellia gets FDA nod to resume gene therapy trial.
Boehringer Ingelheim in deal with China's Simcere Pharma to license IBD drug candidate.
?
?
AI scribes that listen in on doctors and patients and write notes offer promise but open new legal frontiers
REUTERS/Jim Bourg
Health systems are racing to integrate so-called ambient scribes that passively record and synthesize patient-physician interactions into structured medical notes. But to do so, they must navigate a complex web of privacy litigation, regulatory guidance, and professional ethics.
?
Study Rounds
Neighborhoods with more electric cars have cleaner air
?
The more electric cars in a neighborhood, the lower the air pollution from burning fossil fuels, researchers studying satellite data for California found.
Conversely, satellite data also confirmed that neighborhoods that added more gas-powered cars saw a rise in pollution.
“We’re not even fully there in terms of electrifying, but our research shows that California’s transition to electric vehicles is already making measurable differences in the air we breathe,” study leader Sandrah Eckel of the Keck School of Medicine of USC said in a statement.
For every 200 zero-emissions vehicles added to California neighborhoods between 2019 and 2023, nitrogen dioxide levels dropped 1.1%, researchers reported in The Lancet Planetary Health .
The pollutant, released from burning fossil fuels, can trigger asthma attacks, cause bronchitis, and increase the risk of heart disease and stroke. For the analysis, the researchers divided California into 1,692 neighborhoods and obtained publicly available data from the state’s Department of Motor Vehicles on the number of “light-duty” ZEVs registered in each neighborhood. These included full-battery electric cars, plug-in electric hybrids and hydrogen fuel-cell cars.
They then obtained data from a high-resolution satellite sensor that monitors NO2 levels by measuring how the gas absorbs and reflects sunlight.
The researchers said they plan to compare data on ZEV adoption with asthma-related emergency room visits and hospitalizations across California.
While the Trump administration favors gas-powered vehicles and ended tax credits aimed at promoting EVs, the report noted that a full transition to electric vehicles is projected to reduce ambient NO2 concentrations by 61% in the United States and by up to 80% in China.
Meanwhile, the new findings “show that cleaner air isn't just a theory, it's already happening in communities across California,” Eckel said.
?
Read more about pollution and health on Reuters.com
Toxic chemicals permeate the food we eat. Here’s how to design them out
?
Experimental contact lenses monitor pressure in the eye
Experimental contact lenses are being developed that can monitor pressure inside the eye in order to stave off glaucoma, and early animal research found them to be as accurate as current, more cumbersome equipment.
Japanese researchers say they have come up with a way to integrate into the lenses a thin film with multiple layers, each with its own intrinsic properties that help to measure and monitor intraocular pressure in real time, they reported in npj Flexible Electronics .
An antenna built into the lens allows for wireless transmission of the data.
Glaucoma is a leading cause of blindness among people who are unable to monitor and manage their intraocular pressure daily, the researchers noted. Current tools for intraocular pressure measurement are not portable, convenient, easily accessible, or capable of continuous monitoring.
When they tested their lenses in rabbits, the pressures transmitted by the devices matched the pressures obtained with traditional monitoring devices, according to the report.
Certain obstacles must be overcome before the devices are ready for prime time, the authors acknowledge, including the need to distinguish intraocular pressure changes that arise simply from posture changes and blinking.
“Our platform is promising for long-term, non-invasive intraocular pressure monitoring," said study leader Takeo Miyake of Waseda University in Tokyo, "thus making a significant contribution to the early diagnosis and treatment of glaucoma.”
?
In case you missed it...
Health Rounds: Colon cancer becomes leading cause of US cancer deaths for those under 50
Health Rounds: How obesity leads to uncontrolled inflammation discovered
?
This newsletter was edited by Bill Berkrot; additional reporting by Shawana Alleyne-Morris.
Sponsors are not involved in the creation of newsletters or other Reuters news content. Advertise in this newsletter or on Reuters' website
Reuters Health Rounds is sent twice a week. Think your friend or colleague should know about us? Forward this newsletter to them. They can also sign up here .
Want to stop receiving this email? Unsubscribe here . To manage which newsletters you're signed up for, click here .
This email includes limited tracking for Reuters to understand whether you’ve engaged with its contents. For more information on how we process your personal information and your rights, please see our Privacy Statement .
Terms & Conditions
© 2026 Thomson Reuters. All rights reserved.
3 Times Square, New York, NY 10036